Promoting and Communicating Learning Quality at NKU

Mapping Student Learning Outcomes and Assessing Student Learning

D. Kent Johnson, PhD

Examining Learning as a Foundation of Academic Program Review

• Student Learning is central to our operating core (Mintzberg,1979)

• The quality of our degrees is directly related to how clearly we communicate what we expect students to know, be able to do and value upon graduation

• Defining, mapping and assessing student learning outcomes provides a foundation for student and departmental success

Goals for Today

• Develop two to three student learning outcomes statements for your major or academic program

• Identify points in your curriculum (courses) where students are developing those outcomes and the level of achievement expected

• Discuss how current student work provides evidence of that achievement.

• Record an example in the Digital Measures Course Review Form

Developing Student Learning Outcomes - 1

• A Student Learning Outcome is a statement of what you expect students to know or be able to do.

• At the program level, these are statements that define the attributes you expect of your graduates

• To get started, let’s complete Worksheet One listing around 10 things you expect your students to “know” (knowledge) or be able to do (skills) upon completing your major.

Developing Student Learning Outcomes – 2a

One way to ease the development of a student learning outcome is to use an action verb that aligns with cognitive levels developed in Blooms Taxonomy. note – next two slides present a couple of ways to think about this, also, The CLT at University of Texas has an excellent resource at:http://ctl.utexas.edu/teaching-resources/design-your-course/design-for-specific-learning/bloom-s-taxonomy-revised/

Additional resources are on my webpage in the Assessment Area

Developing Student Learning Outcomes – 2a (perspective 1)

Developing Student Learning Outcomes – 2a (perspective 2)

Developing Student Learning Outcomes – 2b

Think about your list to complete: The Learning and Assessment Planning Matrix in Worksheet 2:1. What level of learning do you expect of students at

graduation? (remember, understand, apply, analyze, evaluate, create)

2. What action verb best describes an action that students could do to demonstrate achievement of your expectation.

3. That action verb can become the basis for determining a learning product (something the student produces) that best demonstrates their level of achievement relative to the outcome.

Developing Student Learning Outcomes – 2c – Sample SLOs

For example – if you expect students to reach an application level by the end of a program, they might demonstrate:Student can apply a theory to (perform some action)• In a management or social science course, a student might

apply a theory to complete a case study (the learning product) • In a science course, a student might apply a theory to set up

an experiment (experiment design is the learning product)But, this level of learning might be better demonstrated in a humanities or arts major in a different way, for example

Developing Student Learning Outcomes – 2c – Sample SLOs

For example – if you expect students to reach an application level by the end of a program, they might demonstrate:Student can judge (some product) to• In a literature course a student might Judge the quality of a

literary piece to produce a literary critique (written critique is the product)

• In music a student might Judge the quality of a musical performance to produce a critique for the arts section of a paper (newspaper critique is the learning product)

A Few More ExamplesModel Student Learning Outcomes

At the end of the course, you will be able to summarize the key forces affecting the rise of China as an economic power in the global market by writing a research article in APA format for publication.

You will be able to critique the historical analysis presented in a journal article in terms of how well it accounts for an author’s development and literary production in the twentieth-century American novel by writing a critical essay to be graded with a scoring guide.

At the end of the course, you will be able to create a compelling, original argument in the discipline of sociology that integrates theoretical perspectives and research findings by advancing reasonable conclusions.

At the end of the course, you will be able to design an experiment to test a chemical hypothesis or theory in a capstone research project.

At the end of the course, you will be able to select, analyze, and perform readings from dramatic texts demonstrating consistent control and use of memorization, vocal projection, spatial awareness, stage directions and physical expression.

Milepost – Where We Are

• Developed some student learning outcomes you expect students to achieve by the end of their academic program

• Determined some student products that could provide evidence of student achievement relative to those outcomes

Map – Where we are going next

• Specify the “core” courses in the major through which the outcomes will be achieved

• Determine the curricular pathway from introduced to mastered through which you expect students to achieve the outcomes

• Determine an assessment strategy that fits current departmental needs and resources

• Formalize the Curricular Map and Assessment Plan

Overview – The Curricular Map Student Learning Outcomes by Course and Level Achieved

I=Introduced, E= Emphasized, R=Reinforced, M=Mastered, A=Assessed Outcome 1 Outcome 2 Outcome 3 Outcome 4